Man charged in drunken-driving crash that killed NFL player

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Prosecutors filed felony charges on Wednesday against an immigrant illegally living in the U.S. who is suspected in a drunken-driving crash that killed Indianapolis Colts linebacker Edwin Jackson and an Uber driver in Indiana.

Manuel Orrego-Savala, who is from Guatemala and has twice been deported from the U.S., is charged with causing death while driving intoxicated and leaving the scene of an accident. The 37-year-old said little during his initial court hearing, responding through an interpreter as the judge explained the proceedings and charges.

“He’s very distraught to say the least,” said his lawyer, Jorge Torres. “He’s very confused.”

Investigators said Jackson, 26, and his Uber driver, 54-year-old Jeffrey Monroe, were standing outside Monroe’s car along Interstate 70 when they were struck early Sunday by a pickup truck driven by Orrego-Savala. He was arrested shortly after the fatal crash.

Court documents allege a blood test conducted at a hospital found him with a blood-alcohol level of 0.19, more than double Indiana’s legal limit for driving. The two most serious charges each carry maximum sentence of up to 20 years in prison.

Orrego-Savala was deported in 2007 and 2009, and was again living illegally in the U.S. at the time of the crash, according to investigators. He was charged late Tuesday by federal prosecutors with illegal re-entry of a previously deported alien. He faces up to 10 years in prison on that charge, which the U.S. attorney’s office said would be handled after any state charges are resolved.

President Donald Trump drew added attention to the case on Twitter, calling the highway collision that killed Jackson and Monroe “disgraceful.” The president also prodded Democrats to work with him on illegal immigration and border security.

Torres said after Wednesday’s court hearing that Orrego-Savala’s immigration status has no bearing on the crash case. The attorney noted his client has been living and doing construction work in the Indianapolis area for several years.

A spokesman for Jackson’s family has said his relatives are devastated and planned no response to Trump’s tweets about the crash and the suspect’s immigration status.

“The family is in shock, as you can imagine. This obviously happened so unexpectedly,” Atlanta attorney Daniel Meachum said.